A framework for modeling creep in pure metals

Abstract

The process of creep in pure metals is modeled as the cooperative interaction of three phenomena: the thermally activated, force-dependent release of dislocation segments from obstacles; the substructural refinement of the microstructure due to plastic deformation; and the diffusion-controlled coarsening of the substructure. Key parameters are given as approximate generic values which can be varied. It is shown that for a wide range of parameters, the model reproduces the key features of the creep of pure metals: a steady-state stress exponent near 5 is recovered, and the key microstructural-length scale is related by a power law close to the reciprocal of stress (this dependence is not a strong function of temperature at a given stress). In addition, the activation energy of steady-state creep is nearly that of self-diffusion. Thus, the model reproduces the well-known phenomenology of puremetal steady-state creep. However, the present model is based on separate microstructural phenomena, which can be independently refined and studied.

This article is based on a presentation made in the workshop entitled “Mechanisms of Elevated Temperature Plasticity and Fracture,” which was held June 27–29, 2001, in San Diego, CA, concurrent with the 2001 Joint Applied Mechanics and Materials Summer Conference. The workshop was sponsored by Basic Energy Sciences of the United States Department of Energy.